Hello again from paradise :)
I didn't get to the internet for two days, so I split this update in day 1 and day 2.
Day 1 (Tuesday):
Today was an interesting day, at least by the new standards I developed since living here in total isolation.
I woke up at 6 AM, jumped in the shower, applied sunscreen and insect repellant (which is a must for delicate pale Europeans around here, otherwise we'd get eaten by mosquitoes or the sun would annihilate us within an hour), and joined Zare and Liku, who were already waiting for me in front of the house. Zare especially is an early waker, he usually gets up at 4 AM, but he lets me sleep in since I'm on vacation.
We walked about a mile to get to the local bus station / football field. As a citizen of a first world country, I find the mixture between old and new here somewhat funny. For example, the bus is at least 50 years old and I'd be willing to bet it wouldn't pass any European safety standards (particularly after seeing the driver smashing the front wheel with a sledgehammer before driving away), but it's been upgraded with contactless paying cards for commuters.
We were a bit early, so we waited about 30 minutes for the bus to fill up, then we headed towards Savusavu.
After seeing Nadi (the tourist capital) and Suva (capital city), I expected Savusavu to look fairly similar, but I was in for a pleasant surprise. The town itself essentially consists of a main road, upon which you find all the shops and services you'd ever need, and that's pretty much it. I kept on getting a mental image of and old American wild west town, sans the seaside. It's also much cleaner than aforementioned places, and there's practically no unwanted smells coming from the alleys.
Upon our arrival, we sat down on a bench at the seaside, and waited for the sun to come from behind the clouds so that I was able to take this shot:
After I was content with the picture, we headed towards the food market. On our way we saw a sailboat, about which Zare was able to tell me that it's been damaged during the last hurricane which hit Fiji 3 years ago. Of course I couldn't refrain myself from taking a picture:
When we arrived at the market, Zare and Liku went to buy some necessities while I wanted to make some shots of the stands, but I'm uncomfortable with pushing my camera in the faces of random vendors, that's why I snapped a photo of the only empty stand I could find (and yes, I know, I really should start closing my aperture more, but I just love the bokeh effect too much :P):
I also finally got to buy some locally produced tobacco to satisfy my addiction, it looks and smells lovely, but I haven't cut it up to actually try it yet:
After the market we went to the main street, where Zare went to the post office to pay the bills and I used that time to make a snap of the town:
When he returned, we went to the supermarket, where we bought some snacks and juice, and went back to the beach again, to make some more photos of the seaside. Opposite of us, on a small island, there is a tourist resort, which looks amazing, but also expensive:
I especially liked the huts perched on the beach:
Another view of the bay where we sat down:
And this is my favourite photo from today; I love the contrast between the dock and the boat, plus there is some nice yellow and blue colour on the dock itself:
After I scratched my photography itch, we went back to town, where we bought meat, chicken feed, bread, some snacks, ice cream, oil, flour and sugar. Zare told me he makes a purchase like this once per month, and that's pretty much all the expenses he has, besides electricity. How about that for a low cost life :)
Because the stuff we bought wasn't too light to carry, Zare called our neighbour Vinu, who owns a taxi, and he came to pick us up and gave us a lift back to our house. I asked him to pose for my blog, here he is:
Because it looked like rain in the evening, we didn't go on top of the island as I promised a couple of days ago, I can't really say when we'll be able to, as the prognosis for tomorrow doesn't look too promising either. We hope for the best nevertheless.
Day 2 (Wednesday):
There was rain this morning, so I slept until 8:00 AM. After I woke up and had my morning routine, Zare and I went to bring some gravel and sand on the floor of the henhouse, as the raining stopped for a bit. Due to humidity I was pouring with sweat in an instant. Just as we were finishing, the rain started again.
It rained until lunch, when it stopped once more, and we went for a walk on a hill overlooking the house. Along our way we checked the work that was done by a local guy named Sima. He's employed by Martin (the owner of the house we're occupying) and he's supposed to plant trees, cut grass, maintain the property in general. Zare is supposed to take pics of his progress and report to Martin. We made the shots, so that Sima gets payed. He did a good job, by the way :)
On our walk I took a pic of our house from another angle:
The pond behind the house was made by collecting stones, found while cutting a road we walked on and is currently occupied by frogs and carps.
As we moved on, i made a couple of detail shots of the plants we encountered.
I liked the flowers on this weed:
This next pic was made by Zare, while I was climbing up a steep slope to take shots for Martin, but I cropped it really close as I was fascinated by the contrast:
Last photo for today was this flower, covered in raindrops:
OK, I have one more treat for you; I just found out a couple of days ago that one of the plants that I find the most interesting is actually growing here in Fiji. Its Latin name is Mimosa Pudica, and it has developed an interesting defence mechanism. When touched, it makes itself look withered so that the animals wouldn't eat it. I made a shitty gif for you all to enjoy:
This sums up my past two days.
I'll chime in as soon as possible again, have a good one :)